London midday: FTSE extends losses; Flutter, Centrica slump

(Sharecast News) - London stocks had fallen further by midday on Thursday, dragged lower by losses for Flutter, Centrica and Shell, as investors continued to eye developments in the US-Iran war.

The FTSE 100 was 0.7% lower at 10,367.28, while Brent crude was down 2.3% at $98.97 a barrel.

Sentiment got a boost on Wednesday, with stock markets surging and oil prices plunging following reports the US and Iran were close to agreeing on a one-page memorandum of understanding to end the war and set a framework for more detailed nuclear negotiations.

Trump's tone soured somewhat since then, however, with the US president saying that a deal with Tehran was a "big assumption" and that if it does not agree, US bombing will resume "at a much higher level and intensity than it was before".

Susannah Streeter, chief investment strategist at Wealth Club, said: "The wild streak of enthusiasm which hit markets amid hopes for a major de-escalation in the Iran conflict is tempering today.

"There's a realisation that there are more hurdles to climb for a longer-term resolution to be agreed, even though Iran is reported to be studying a US peace proposal aimed at formally ending the conflict. President Trump is still threatening to resume strikes if a deal isn't struck, so there's more caution around."

On home shores, meanwhile, local elections were in focus. Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said "expectations of a bruising result for Labour look firmly baked in".

"A poor showing would pile more pressure on Starmer, leaving investors to weigh whether political pressure starts to translate into a different fiscal direction for the UK," he added.

Also on home turf, a survey showed that construction output saw its steepest decline in April since November 2025 as the Middle East conflict drove up input prices.

The S&P Global construction purchasing managers' index fell to 39.7 from 45.6 in March. This was below the 50.0 mark that separates contraction from expansion and marked the weakest reading for five months.

Civil engineering activity saw the steepest decline, followed by house building. Commercial work showed some resilience in comparison to elsewhere in the construction sector, although the latest reduction was the fastest recorded so far in 2026.

Survey respondents pointed to subdued demand conditions and a subsequent lack of new work to replace completed projects in April. This was signalled by the sharpest decline in total new business since November 2025.

Construction companies said elevated business uncertainty due to the Middle East conflict had led to longer sales conversion times and fewer tender opportunities. The survey also revealed the fastest overall rate of cost inflation since June 2022.

Tim Moore, economics director at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said: "A rapid acceleration of input cost inflation was seen across the UK construction sector in April. Aside from the post-pandemic surge in input prices from early-2021 to mid-2022, the latest rise in purchasing costs was the steepest in three decades of data collection.

"Around two-thirds of the survey panel reported higher cost burdens in April, which was overwhelmingly linked to fuel surcharges and subsequent rises in raw material prices. Adding to supply chain challenges, the latest data also indicated longer wait times for the delivery of construction items due to international shipping delays.

"April data again signalled subdued underlying demand conditions, despite construction companies reporting pockets of growth in areas such as energy infrastructure work. A lack of new orders to replace completed projects contributed to the sharpest decline in business activity for five months."

In equity markets, Flutter Entertainment tumbled as cut its guidance for full-year revenue and adjusted EBITDA, partly due to unfavourable sports results, and announced the departure of Amy Howe, chief executive of its US business.

Relx, Admiral, AG Barr and Ibstock were also in the red as they traded without entitlement to the dividend.

British Gas owner Centrica slumped as it cautioned that full-year retail EBITDA was expected to be towards the lower end of its guidance range of �500m to �800m. It also announced the acquisition of the Severn Combined-Cycle Gas Turbine power station from the Calon Energy Group for about �370m.

BAE Systems was weaker even as the weapons maker reiterated annual guidance of 9% - 11% earnings growth as regional wars continued to boost its order book.

Oil major Shell gushed lower despite posting an above-forecast surge in profits fuelled by soaring energy prices in the wake of the US-Iran war.

First-quarter adjusted earnings came in at $6.92bn, up from $3.26bn in the fourth quarter and $5.58bn a year previously. Analysts had been expecting earnings closer to $6.36bn. The blue chip also upped the divided by 5% and announced a $3bn share buyback programme.

On the upside, JD Sports Fashion jumped despite a warning that current-year profits would be lower as it continued to wrestle with muted market growth due to a weaker spending outlook for consumers and uncertainty caused by the Iran war.

Hiscox shot higher as the insurer posted a 10.2% jump in first-quarter contract written premiums, pointing to accelerating momentum in the retail segment.

Autotrader shares motored ahead following a report that activist investor Palliser Capital has started building a stake the classifieds company.

InterContinental Hotels rose as it posted better-than-expected first-quarter revenue per available room and backed its expectations for the full year.

Helios Towers surged as it upgraded its financial and operational full-year guidance following a strong first-quarter performance.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 10,367.28 -0.68%

FTSE 250 (MCX) 22,909.73 0.34%

techMARK (TASX) 5,926.87 -0.54%

FTSE 100 - Risers

JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 72.42p 6.50%

Hiscox Limited (DI) (HSX) 1,629.00p 5.23%

Autotrader Group (AUTO) 520.40p 4.04%

Fresnillo (FRES) 3,603.00p 3.81%

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 150.35p 3.30%

Antofagasta (ANTO) 3,936.00p 3.00%

Anglo American (AAL) 3,922.50p 2.34%

Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,236.80p 2.03%

Lion Finance Group (BGEO) 11,430.00p 1.88%

Intertek Group (ITRK) 5,196.00p 1.84%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Relx plc (REL) 2,451.00p -6.67%

Flutter Entertainment (DI) (FLTR) 7,190.00p -6.60%

Admiral Group (ADM) 3,171.00p -5.17%

Centrica (CNA) 201.00p -4.06%

BAE Systems (BA.) 2,019.00p -3.40%

Diageo (DGE) 1,536.60p -2.22%

Pearson (PSON) 1,104.50p -2.13%

3i Group (III) 2,615.00p -2.10%

Games Workshop Group (GAW) 19,545.00p -2.08%

Shell (SHEL) 3,146.50p -1.93%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Helios Towers (HTWS) 236.20p 15.85%

Johnson Service Group (JSG) 137.40p 4.80%

TBC Bank Group (TBCG) 4,730.00p 4.66%

Pan African Resources (PAF) 155.70p 4.26%

Raspberry PI Holdings (RPI) 717.50p 3.76%

Endeavour Mining (EDV) 4,857.00p 3.74%

Dr. Martens (DOCS) 65.20p 3.33%

Hochschild Mining (HOC) 662.50p 3.31%

Watches of Switzerland Group (WOSG) 552.00p 3.09%

Ceres Power Holdings (CWR) 746.00p 2.90%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Barr (A.G.) (BAG) 618.50p -2.68%

Ibstock (IBST) 102.40p -2.57%

Inchcape (INCH) 821.20p -2.29%

QinetiQ Group (QQ.) 437.20p -2.26%

Clarkson (CKN) 4,858.00p -2.14%

Victrex plc (VCT) 603.00p -1.95%

Ithaca Energy (ITH) 247.60p -1.94%

Elementis (ELM) 143.60p -1.91%

B&M European Value Retail (BME) 171.90p -1.61%

Supermarket Income Reit (SUPR) 83.20p -1.60%